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OZ Virtual was a 3D world viewer created by OZ Interactive that enabled real-time collaboration communications in shared spaces on the Internet with a strong focus on creative content production. The viewer supported the Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML 2.0) a standard for creating and experiencing virtual reality worlds on the Internet. It came with an avatar editor that allowed the user to select from a set of pre-defined avatars with body movements and modify their appearance. Users could communicate using voice chat using low bandwidth codecs supplied by Voxware.
OZ Virtual explored early 3D social environments with a focus on expressive avatars and themed spaces. Its cultural impact lies in pushing forward avatar‑centric communication during a period when most online interaction was still text‑based. It influenced later graphical chat platforms by emphasizing mood, vibe, and presence. OZ Virtual helped establish the aesthetic lineage of early 2000s 3D social worlds.
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OZ Virtual
page! If you’re the platform owner and would like us to make updates to this page, please reach out to: info[at}virtualworlds.museum. If you’re a world builder who wants to help us create a museum hub on this platform, we’d be happy to hear from you as well. We welcome feedback and/or help and look forward to hearing from you.